City solve defensive crisis with £3.5m capture of centre-back Demichelis

Manchester City have confirmed the signing of Martin Demichelis from Atletico Madrid.

The fee is understood to be in the region of £3.5million and the 32-year-old Argentine has signed a two-year deal after passing a medical on Sunday morning.

The former Malaga and Bayern Munich defender flew into Manchester on Saturday evening and is now set to be reunited with City manager Manuel Pellegrini, who he has previously worked with at both River Plate and Malaga.

VIDEO Scroll down to watch Manuel Pellegrini: I hope to sign a defender before deadline day

New man in town: Demichelis has signed for Manchester City on a two-year deal

Upon completing his move, Demichelis
said: 'I am delighted to have joined City because I am still hungry for
success and want to improve.

'I have been in Europe for 11 years now and this was a great chance for me to play in the Premier League with such a big club.

'When
there is a change, there is always a process. There’s always a period
of adjustment you have to go through. Moving from South America to
Europe is a big change and you need some time to settle in because
everything is new.

'But
in my case, I have lived in Europe for many years and I don’t think
there’ll be any problems in adjusting to life here. Now I want to repay
the manager's faith in me out on the pitch. I can't wait to get
started.'."

City's move
for Demichelis had been delayed while Atletico ensured they recruited a
replacement, eventually signing Toby Alderweld from Ajax.

Bargain? Demichelis (left) was signed on a free by Atletico Madrid and was seen as a cheaper alternative to £30m rated Porto defender Eliiaquim Mangala (right)

Crocked: Manchester City's Vincent Kompany lies injured during the match against Newcastle United

Demichelis,
32, will be a welcome addition to a City squad that has been ravaged by
defensive injuries in the early weeks of the season.

City
will be without Vincent Kompany until the end of September, while Micah
Richards will only return to full training during the international
break.

Matija Nastasic
returned to the team and partnered Joleon Lescott at the heart of City's
defence for the game against Hull, but the pair were far from
convincing, despite a 2-0 win.

City did consider a move for Porto defender Eliaquim Mangala but were deterred by the £30million asking price.

It
is anticipated that Demichelis will be the only City addition in the
final days of the transfer window, joining Fernandinho, Jesus Navas,
Alvaro Negredo and Stevan Jovetic as Pellegrini's summer spending passes
the £100million mark.

City’s Abdul Razak has completed a move to join Russian Premier League side Anzhi Makhachkala on loan for the season.